Sacred Poems By the Late Right Hon. Sir Robert Grant |
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 | Sacred Poems |  |
3
I.
For we have not an High Priest who cannot be touched with
the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like
as we are, yet without sin.—Hebrews iv. 15.
1
When gathering clouds around I view,And days are dark, and friends are few,
On Him I lean, who, not in vain,
Experienc'd every human pain;
He sees my wants, allays my fears,
And counts and treasures up my tears.
2
If aught should tempt my soul to strayFrom heavenly wisdom's narrow way,
To fly the good I would pursue,
Or do the sin I would not do,—
Still He, who felt temptation's power,
Shall guard me in that dangerous hour.
4
3
If wounded love my bosom swell,Deceiv'd by those I prized too well,—
He shall his pitying aid bestow
Who felt on earth severer woe,
At once betray'd, denied, or fled,
By those who shared his daily bread.
4
If vexing thoughts within me rise,And sore dismay'd my spirit dies,
Still He who once vouchsafed to bear
The sickening anguish of despair,
Shall sweetly soothe, shall gently dry,
The throbbing heart, the streaming eye.
5
When sorrowing o'er some stone I bend,Which covers what was once a friend,
And from his voice, his hand, his smile,
Divides me—for a little while;
Thou, Saviour, mark'st the tears I shed,
For thou didst weep o'er Lazarus dead.
5
6
And O, when I have safely pastThrough every conflict—but the last,
Still, still unchanging, watch beside
My painful bed,—for Thou hast died;
Then point to realms of cloudless day,
And wipe the latest tear away!
6
II. LITANY.
1
Saviour, when in dust to theeLow we bow th' adoring knee;
When repentant, to the skies
Scarce we lift our weeping eyes:
O by all thy pains and woe,
Suffer'd once for man below,
Bending from thy throne on high,
Hear our solemn Litany!
2
By thy helpless infant years,By thy life of want and tears,
By thy days of sore distress
In the savage wilderness,
7
Of the insulting tempter's power;
Turn, O turn, a favouring eye,
Hear our solemn Litany!
3
By the sacred griefs that weptO'er the grave where Lazarus slept;
By the boding tears that flow'd
Over Salem's lov'd abode;
By the anguish'd sigh that told
Treachery lurked within thy fold;
From thy seat above the sky
Hear our solemn Litany!
4
By thine hour of dire despair,By thine agony of pray'r,
By the cross, the nail, the thorn,
Piercing spear and torturing scorn,
By the gloom that veil'd the skies
O'er the dreadful sacrifice,
Listen to our humble cry!
Hear our solemn Litany!
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5
By thy deep expiring groan,By the sad sepulchral stone,
By the vault whose dark abode
Held in vain the rising God!
Oh! from earth to heav'n restor'd,
Mighty re-ascended Lord,
Listen, listen to the cry
Of our solemn Litany!
9
III.
Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon
earth that I desire in comparison of thee.—Psalm lxxiii. 25.
1
Lord of earth! thy forming handWell this beauteous frame hath plann'd,—
Woods that wave, and hills that tower,—
Ocean rolling in his power,—
All that strikes the gaze unsought,—
All that charms the lonely thought,—
Friendship,—gem transcending price,—
Love,—a flower from paradise,—
Yet, amidst this scene so fair,
Should I cease thy smile to share,
What were all its joys to me?
Whom have I on earth but Thee?
10
2
Lord of heaven! beyond our sightRolls a world of purer light;
There, in love's unclouded reign,
Parted hands shall clasp again;
Martyrs there, and prophets high,
Blaze a glorious company;
While immortal music rings
From unnumbered seraph strings;—
O that world is passing fair;
Yet if thou wert absent there,
What were all its joys to me?
Whom have I in heaven but Thee?
3
Lord of earth and heaven! my breastSeeks in thee its only rest;
I was lost; thy accents mild
Homeward lur'd thy wandering child;
I was blind; thy healing ray
Charm'd the long eclipse away;
Source of every joy I know,
Solace of my every wo,
11
Ceas'd upon my soul to shine,
What were earth or heaven to me?
Whom have I in each but thee?
12
IV.
Hosanna in the highest.
1
From Olivet's sequester'd seatsWhat sounds of transport spread?
What concourse moves thro' Salem's streets,
To Sion's holy head?
Behold him there in lowliest guise,
The Saviour of mankind!
Triumphal shouts before him rise,
And shouts reply behind:
And, “Strike,” they cry, “your loudest string:
He comes—Hosanna to our King!”
13
2
Nor these alone, that present train,Their present King ador'd;
An earlier and a later strain
Extol the self-same Lord.
Obedient to his Father's will,
He came—he lived, he died;
And gratulating voices still
Before and after cried,
“All hail the Prince of David's line!
Hosanna to the man divine!”
3
He came to earth: from eldest years,A long and bright array
Of prophet bards and patriarch seers
Proclaim'd the glorious day:
The light of heaven in every breast,
Its fire on every lip,
In tuneful chorus on they prest,
A goodly fellowship:
And still their pealing anthem ran,
“Hosanna to the Son of Man!”
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4
He came to earth, thro' life he pastA man of griefs; and lo,
A noble army following fast
His track of pain and wo:
All deck'd with palms, and strangely bright,
That suffering host appears;
And stainless are their robes of white,
Tho' steep'd in blood and tears;
And sweet their martyr-anthem flows,
“Hosanna to the man of woes!”
5
From ages past descends the layTo ages yet to be,
Till far its echoes roll away
Into eternity.
But oh! while saints and angels high
Thy final triumph share,
Amidst thy followers, Lord, shall I,
Tho' last and meanest there,
Receive a place, and feebly raise
A faint hosanna to thy praise?
15
V.
Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest.—Psalm xliv. 12.
1
O Saviour! whose mercy, severe in its kindness,Has chasten'd my wand'rings and guided my way,
Ador'd be the pow'r which illumin'd my blindness,
And wean'd me from phantoms that smil'd to betray.
2
Enchanted with all that was dazzling and fair,I follow'd the rainbow,—I caught at the toy;—
And still in displeasure thy goodness was there,
Disappointing the hope, and defeating the joy.
16
3
The blossom blush'd bright, but a worm was below;—The moonlight shone fair, there was blight in the beam;—
Sweet whispered the breeze, but it whispered of woe;—
And bitterness flow'd in the soft-flowing stream.
4
So, cur'd of my folly, yet cured but in part,I turn'd to the refuge thy pity display'd;
And still did this eager and credulous heart
Weave visions of promise that bloom'd but to fade.
5
I thought that the course of the pilgrim to heavenWould be bright as the summer, and glad as the morn;
Thou show'dst me the path,—it was dark and uneven,
All rugged with rock, and all tangled with thorn.
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5
I dream'd of celestial rewards and renown,—I grasp'd at the triumph which blesses the brave,
I ask'd for the palm-branch, the robe, and the crown,
I ask'd—and thou show'dst me a cross and a grave.
6
Subdu'd and instructed, at length, to thy will,My hopes and my longings I fain would resign;
O give me the heart that can wait and be still,
Nor know of a wish or a pleasure but thine!
7
There are mansions exempted from sin and from woe,But they stand in a region by mortals untrod;
There are rivers of joy,—but they roll not below;
There is rest,—but it dwells in the presence of God.
18
VI. THE BROOKLET.
1
Sweet brooklet, ever gliding,Now high the mountain riding,
The lone vale now dividing,
Whither away?
“With pilgrim course I flow,
“Or in summer's scorching glow,
“Or o'er moonless wastes of snow,
“Nor stop nor stay;
“For O, by high behest,
“To a bright abode of rest
“In my parent Ocean's breast
“I hasten away!”
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2
Many a dark morass,Many a craggy mass,
Thy feeble force must pass;
Yet, yet delay!
“Tho' the marsh be dire and deep,
“Tho' the crag be stern and steep,
“On, on, my course must sweep,
“I may not stay;
“For O, be it east or west,
“To a home of glorious rest
“In the bright sea's boundless breast,
“I hasten away!”
3
The warbling bowers beside thee,The laughing flowers that hide thee
With soft accord they chide thee,
Sweet brooklet, stay!
“I taste of the fragrant flowers,
“I respond to the warbling bowers,
“And sweetly they charm the hours
“Of my winding way;
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“Of that everlasting rest,
“In my parent's boundless breast,
“I hasten away!”
4
Know'st thou that dread abyss?Is it a scene of bliss?
Ah, rather cling to this,
Sweet brooklet, stay!
“O who shall fitly tell
“What wonders there may dwell?—
“That world of mystery well
“Might strike dismay;
“But I know 'tis my parent's breast,—
“There held, I must needs be blest;
“And with joy to that promised rest
“I hasten away!”
21
VII. PSALM XLIX.
1
With musings sad my spirit teems,My harp is strung to saddest themes;
O, mortal, hear its notes complain,
Nor shun a dark but faithful strain
Whose simple length, tho' short, shall span
The mournful history of man.
2
How oft, with dreams of pomp elate,The rich upbuilds his haughty state,
With eager fondness counts his gains,
And proudly names his wide domains;
While, left to poverty and scorn,
The just in humble silence mourn!
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3
Yet envy not the pomp, ye just,That towers upon a base of dust:
For O, when death decreed shall come
To shake the proud man's lofty dome,
Will proffer'd gold avail to save?
Or ransoms bribe the yawning grave?
4
Lo, stretch'd before his anguish'd eyes,A child, a wife, a brother lies;
How vain his stores, his cares how vain,
The fleeting spirit to retain!
The form he clasps resigns its breath,
And fills his blank embrace with death.
5
Again it strikes,—a second blow,—The man of pride himself is low:
Shall wealth, shall state, attend the dead?
'Tis only to his clay-cold bed.
Caress'd by crowds, by hundreds known,
He fills the narrow house alone.
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6
The funeral pomp, superb and slow,The gorgeous pageantry of woe,
The praise that fills th' historic roll,—
Can these assist the parted soul?
Or will remembered grandeur cheer
The shivering, lonely traveller?
7
And when that breathless, wasting clayAgain shall feel the life-blood play,
When on the cell, where dark it lies,
A morn of piercing light shall rise,
O whither then shall guilt retire,
Or how avoid the eyes of fire?
8
O man, with heaven's own honours bright,And fall'st thou thus, thou child of light?
And still shall heirs on heirs anew
The melancholy jest pursue?
And, born the offspring of the sky,
In folly live, in darkness die?
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9
But I on thee depend, O Lord,My hope, my help, and high reward;
Thy word illumes my feeble eyes;
Thy spirit all my strength supplies;
In sickness thou my aid shalt be,
And death but gives me all to thee!
25
VIII. PSALM II.
1
Wherefore do the nations wageWar against the King of kings?
Whence the people's maddening rage,
Fraught with vain imaginings?
2
Haughty chiefs and rulers proudForth in banded fury run,
Braving, with defiance loud,
God and his anointed Son:
3
“Let us break their bonds in twain!“Let us cast their cords away!”—
But the Highest with disdain
Sees and mocks their vain array.
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4
“High on Zion I prepare(Thus he speaks) “a regal throne,
“Thou my Prince, my chosen heir,
“Rise to claim it as thine own!
5
“Son of God, with God the same,“Enter thine imperial dome!
“Lo! the shaking heav'ns proclaim,
“Mightiest Lord, thy kingdom come.
6
“Pomp or state dost thou demand?“In thy Father's glory shine!
“Dost thou ask for high command?
“Lo! the universe is thine!”—
7
Ye who spurn his righteous sway,Yet, ah yet, he spares your breath;
Yet his hand, averse to slay,
Balances the bolt of death.
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8
Ere that dreadful bolt descends,Haste before his feet to fall,
Kiss the sceptre he extends,
And adore him, Lord of all!
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IX. PSALM XIX.
[_]
(This is intended as a sequel or counterpart to Addison's hymn, “The spacious firmament.” It corresponds to the latter portion of the 19th Psalm, as Addison's does to the former.)
1
The starry firmament on high,And all the glories of the sky,
Yet shine not to thy praise, O Lord,
So brightly as thy written word:
The hopes that holy word supplies,
Its truths divine and precepts wise—
In each a heavenly beam I see,
And every beam conducts to thee.
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2
When, taught by painful proof to knowThat all is vanity below,
The sinner roams from comfort far,
And looks in vain for sun or star,
Soft gleaming then those lights divine
Through all the cheerless darkness shine,
And sweetly to his ravished eye
Disclose the day-spring from on high.
3
The heart in sensual fetters bound,And barren as the wintry ground,
Confesses, Lord, thy quick'ning ray;—
Thy word can charm the spell away,
With genial influence can beguile
The frozen wilderness to smile;
Bid living waters o'er it flow,
And all be paradise below.
4
Almighty Lord! the sun shall fail,The moon forget her nightly tale,
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The radiant chorus of the sky;
But, fixed for everlasting years,
Unmov'd amid the wreck of spheres,
Thy word shall shine in cloudless day,
When heaven and earth have pass'd away.
31
X. PSALM LXXI.
1
With years oppress'd, with sorrows worn,Dejected, harass'd, sick, forlorn,
To thee, O God, I pray:
To thee my wither'd hands arise,
To thee I lift these failing eyes,
Oh! cast me not away!
2
Thy mercy heard my infant prayer,Thy love, with all a mother's care,
Sustain'd my childish days:
Thy goodness watch'd my ripening youth,
And form'd my heart to love thy truth,
And fill'd my lips with praise.
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3
O Saviour! has thy grace declined?Can years affect th' Eternal Mind?
Or time its love decay?—
A thousand ages pass thy sight,
And all their long and weary flight
Is gone like yesterday.
4
Then, even in age and grief, thy nameShall still my languid heart inflame,
And bow my faltering knee:
Oh! yet this bosom feels the fire,
This trembling hand and drooping lyre
Have yet a strain for thee!
5
Yes! broken, tuneless, still, O Lord,This voice transported shall record
Thy goodness tried so long;
Till, sinking slow, with calm decay,
Its feeble murmurs melt away
Into a seraph's song!
33
XI. PSALM CIV.
1
O worship the KingAll glorious above,
O gratefully sing
His power and his love—
Our shield and defender,
The Ancient of days,
Pavilion'd in splendour,
And girded with praise.
2
O tell of his might,O sing of his grace,
Whose robe is the light,
Whose canopy space.
34
Deep thunder-clouds form,
And dark is his path
On the wings of the storm.
3
This earth, with its storeOf wonders untold,
Almighty! thy power
Hath founded of old;
Hath stablish'd it fast
By a changeless decree,
And round it hath cast,
Like a mantle, the sea.
4
Thy bountiful careWhat tongue can recite?
It breathes in the air,
It shines in the light:
It streams from the hills,
It descends to the plain,
And sweetly distils
In the dew and the rain.
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5
Frail children of dust,And feeble as frail,
In thee do we trust,
Nor find thee to fail:
Thy mercies how tender!
How firm to the end!
Our Maker, Defender,
Redeemer, and Friend!
6
O measureless might!Ineffable Love!
While angels delight
To hymn thee above,
The humbler creation,
Tho' feeble their lays,
With true adoration
Shall lisp to thy praise!
36
XII. PART OF PSALM LXXXIV.
IMITATED.
1
How deep the joy, Almighty Lord,Thy altars to the heart afford!
With envying eyes I see
The swallow fly to nestle there,
And find within the house of prayer
A bliss denied to me!
2
Compelled by day to roam for foodWhere scorching suns or tempests rude
Their angry influence fling,
O, gladly in that sheltered nest
She smooths, at eve, her ruffled breast,
And folds her weary wing.
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3
Thrice happy wand'rer! fain would I,Like thee, from ruder climates fly,
That seat of rest to share;
Opprest with tumult, sick with wrongs,
How oft my fainting spirit longs
To lay its sorrows there!
4
Oh! ever on that holy groundThe cov'ring cherub Peace is found,
With brooding wings serene;
And Charity's seraphic glow,
And gleams of glory that foreshow
A higher, brighter scene.
5
For even that refuge but bestowsA transient tho' a sweet repose,
For one short hour allow'd;—
Then, upwards we shall take our flight
To hail a spring without a blight,
A heaven without a cloud!
| Sacred Poems | |